BEIRUT: Turkish authorities intervened to secure the return of two Syrian dissidents held in Syria, after being deported from Turkish refugee camps Sunday, the refugees told The Daily Star, raising questions about the level of coordination between Syria and Turkey.

The two men – Azzam Haj Mahmoud Sheikh, 36 and Omar Mahmoud, 21 – returned to the Turkish Rayhanli refugee camp Wednesday after being deported to Syria Sunday, refugees told The Daily Star by telephone from the camp.

Fearing arrest after participating in protests, the two men fled to Turkey 10 days ago. Late Saturday, activists inside the camp said, the men were summoned to the Bab al-Hawa border to be registered, but were instead driven to the frontier, handed over to Syrian authorities and arrested Sunday.

Turkish authorities reportedly said the men had been deported because they had been seeking work inside Turkey and were not genuinely targeted as dissidents. Activists later told The Daily Star the Turkish authorities told them their deportation had been the result of a “translation error” at the border registry.

Their arrest sparked protests inside the camps Monday and Tuesday by Syrians who attempted to block border gates, demanding greater protection of Syrians in exile.

Syrians inside the camp accuse Turkish authorities of working with the Syrian intelligence to trick them into returning to danger. In June, Syrian Colonel Hussein Harmoush became the first senior military figure to publicly defect, denouncing the Syrian regime from Turkey. Months later his “confessions” were aired on Syrian state television after his mysterious return to Syria.

Activists told The Daily Star Harmoush had been lured back after receiving threats to his family. He has not been heard from since.

Mahmoud Moussa, a Syrian refugee assisting with coordination in the Rayhanli camp, told The Daily Star Wednesday Mahmoud and Sheikh had been released from custody in Syria after one night and allowed to return to their homes near Jisr al-Shughur in north-western Syria. They said Turkish consular officials had then secured their safe passage back to the Turkish camp and arrived mid-afternoon Wednesday.

“We are not sure why they were freed,” Moussa said while speaking with the men upon their arrival.

“I received a call from a Turkish consular official to say they had been released but must come back immediately to Turkey.”

“All we know is that the Turkish government intervened and that they were treating their case as an individual case.”

Upon returning, Azzam said he believed Turkish authorities had secured his release, but had no further details, adding only that he “felt safe back in Turkey.”

Moussa said Syrians in the camp rioted Monday and Tuesday to demand no more Syrians were returned to danger.

“There’s definitely something wrong here. We want to make sure no more Syrians are sent back by accident or by purpose,” he said.

Another Syrian activist working with the refugees who asked not to be identified said that the latest incident posed questions about the level of coordination between the Turkish and Syrian authorities.

“It means a lot for us here. It means they are coordinating on some level,” she said.

“If they could intervene in this case, why not in the case of Harmoush?”

“We want to know what level of protection Turkey is willing to provide to Syrian refugees in danger.”

“It would be much better to have international organizations in the camps for protection.”

A Turkish diplomat said he had no further details about the handover.

The incident came as Turkey said Wednesday it would not let its territory be used to launch attacks against other countries after Syria said it had foiled a bid by “terrorists” to infiltrate from the Turkish border.

“Turkey is not allowing any armed groups [to launch attacks] against other countries,” a Turkish diplomat who declined to be identified told AFP when asked about the Syrian news reports.

Syria’s official news agency SANA reported Tuesday that Syrian border guards had thwarted an attempt the previous night by “armed terrorist groups from Turkey” to cross into the country.

The guards had wounded an unspecified number of the 35 gunmen they had intercepted without suffering any casualties on their side, SANA reported.

Turkish diplomatic sources said the SANA report was inaccurate and added that it was not Ankara’s policy to “send any of its military personnel to other countries.”

Rebel soldiers said their Free Syrian Army, some of whose officers are based in Turkey, had clashed Tuesday with Syrian government troops along the Turkish frontier, but they strongly denied that their forces had moved into Syria from Turkey.

Syrian troops along the Turkish border had again opened fire in sustained bursts Wednesday, residents of Turkish villages close to the frontier said.